Denton Record-Chronicle (Denton, Tex.), Vol. 112, No. 176, Ed. 1 Monday, January 25, 2016 Page: 3 of 18
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NATIONAL
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Denton Record-Chronicle
Monday, January 25, 2016
Watchdog may
be no match for
Trump’s style
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Republican
presidential
candidate
Sen. Ted
Cruz, R-Tex-
as, left, is
welcomed to
the stage by
radio and
television
personality
Glenn Beck at
a rally Satur-
day in Water-
loo, Iowa.
he British called Donald
Trump a “wazzock” in a
Parliament debate last
week about whether he should
be banned from their great
empire. They got that wrong.
A wazzock is a British term
for an idiot. Trump is no idiot.
He might be the most cunning
American alive today.
Two weeks ago, I an-
nounced my symbolic # Watch-
dogForPresident campaign for
the U.S. presidency to — as my
campaign motto stresses
lake the CON out of consum-
er.” I’m a law-and-order candi-
date who wants to chase all liv-
ing scammers through the
gates of hell, or prison, which-
ever is easier.
Several readers sent me
wonderful notes of support.
But I’m beginning to see, like a
dozen other actual candidates,
that I may be fighting a lost
cause.
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THE WATCHDOG
ft
ABOUT THIS
COLUMN
Andrew Harnik/
AP
The Watchdog Desk works for
you to shine light on ques-
tionable practices in business
and government. We welcome
your story ideas and tips.
Contact The Watchdog
Email: watchdog@dallasnews.
Donors paved way for Cruz
com
keep in touch through weekly funds. The Wilks brothers are
strategy phone calls.
That’s not how super PACs of political donations, having
usually work. More typically, made billions in 2011 by selling
multiple donors turn over their their company, which manufac-
money and leave the political tures equipment for the hydrau-
decisions to professional strate- lie fracturing of natural gas.
gists. For example, Jeb Bush’s
super PAC counts more than aside their millions for Cruz 10
two dozen million-dollar do- months ago, it’s only now that
the money is making its way to
For Cruz, the pool of really the 2016 race in a major way.
big donors is far more concen-
trated: Mercer gave $11 million,
Neugebauer gave $10 million,
and the Wilks brothers and their lion in independent expendi-
wives together gave $15 million, tures to help Cruz or attack other
That level of support has candidates —most often Florida
opened Cruz to criticism that Sen. Marco Rubio, federal elec-
donors are influencing his poli- tion records show,
cies, whether on abortion, ener-
gy or the gold standard.
March.
Four businessmen
put $36 million
behind Texan
Call: 214-977-2952
Write: Dave Lieber, P.0. Box
655237, Dallas, TX 75265
“No one wants to lose,” Neu-
gebauer told The Associated
Press when asked why he and
others bet big on Cruz. ‘We
didn’t miss that an outsider
would win. I think we’ve nailed
relative newcomers to the world
I can’t beat Trump, and as
of this winter day, nobody else
can either. I’ll forge ahead in
my campaign because unlike
Jeb!, I’m a high-energy guy.
Political predictions are always
wrong.
But if a watchdog’s job is to
keep an eye on our leaders, it’s
especially important to watch
those considered to be dema-
gogues. What’s a demagogue?
A political leader who appeals
to emotions and fears of the
masses, who tells lies and ex-
ploits crises.
On second thought, Trump
is not the only demagogue on
the stage. Many candidates fit
that definition.
Today I want to share a few
ideas about Trump’s appeal —
not politically, but stylistically.
What sets him apart, I be-
lieve, is his speaking style,
which for many of us is hypnot-
ic in that we wait to see whom
he strikes at next. (“George
Will with the little glasses,”
Trump says. “Take away the
glasses, he looks like a dumb
guy, I’m telling you.”)
I have a particular interest
in Trump’s style because I’ve
studied the craft of public
speaking extensively for the
past decade and earned my
Certified Speaking Profession-
al designation from the Na-
tional Speakers Association.
This is a nonemotional
analysis, mostly devoid of a po-
litical slant, so please take it for
what it is.
■ He seems to speak off
the cuff. He acts like he’s rifling
in a stream-of-consciousness
improv. Actually, he has a
script, or more accurately an
outline of what he wants to say
at each speech. When he spoke
at the American Airlines Cen-
ter, I saw him put sheets back in
his inside jacket pocket. I took a
photo, blew it up and saw his
topics listed in big print.
■ Conversational. He has
an uncanny ability to make his
listeners believe and feel that
he’s talking directly to them as
individuals. Jack Paar intro-
duced that intimate sitting-on-
a-stool talking style to TV in
the 1950s. Trump updates it
with bombast. But he’s more
likely to hit you with the stool
than sit on it.
■ The hero’s journey. The
key to any good speech or story
is a hero who is trying to over-
come a villain. That’s Trump’s
whole shtick. That’s his Trump
card. (Oh, sorry. Speakers
shouldn’t speak in cliches.)
■ Power of threes. Pro
speakers know that speaking
in threes is effective. Three
times makes the point. Trump
does this constantly. At Liberty
University, he told the students
last week: “The Bible is the
best. The Bible blows it away.
There’s nothing like the Bible.”
■ Audience engagement:
Millennials, especially, dislike
speakers who conduct one-
way conversations. Trump
handles this by talking back to
his audience, going beyond
President Barack Obama’s “I
love you, too.” Trump told a
man who shouted something
at his speech last week, “Stand
up. That’s very good. I like you.”
■ Grand exaggerations.
Along with his racism and his
bullying style, this is a negative
trait for Trump. If Ronald Rea-
gan was the Great Communi-
cator, Trump is the Great Exag-
gerator. Reagan supposedly
said catsup was a vegetable
and trees caused pollution. He
was nearly crucified by his ene-
mies. Trump has more Teflon
than Reagan. He gets away
with it.
Trump says the American
Airlines Center was “packed”
when he spoke there, with
21.000 people. Well, I was
there. The upper deck in front
of him was half empty. He got
17.000 at most. But he’ll never
say that.
On the Jeb Bush campaign,
he says, “He spent $79 million.
I spent nothing.” Wrong. He
has staff and an airplane and
lots of expenses that go far be-
yond “nothing.”
■ He plays all the parts.
Back to what he does effective-
ly, when Trump tells a story, he
often acts out the parts of the
other players with make-be-
lieve dialogue. “You people are
going to get sick and tired of
winning. You’re going to say,
‘Please, please, President
Trump, we can’t take this
much victory. Please stop ... .’
And I’m going to say to you,
‘We’re going to win. I don’t care
what you say.’”
■ Newsy. Trump speeches
each day are updated to infuse
his take on the latest Trump-
related news. In a sense, he re-
placed Jon Stewart as one who
delivers a comedy version of
that day’s news.
■ Senses. Trump’s story-
telling ability helps his listen-
ers see, feel and almost touch.
He even incorporates smell
when he can. (“The smell of
death ... was with us for
months, the smell, the air,” he
said in his stunning debate de-
fense of New Yorkers and how
they handled the aftermath of
the Sept. 11 attacks.)
■ Interior monologue.
Trump sometimes shows us
what he’s thinking, as if he’s
looking in the mirror talking to
himself. This gives insight into
a private space that other can-
didates don’t share. They erect
privacy barriers.
■ Funny. As despicable
and unacceptable as his racist
views are, he manages to use
humor when he can to make
his points and soften his edge.
George Wallace wasn’t a funny
racist. Trump is.
Trump has traveled far
from his flat New York candi-
dacy announcement, where
most of these traits seemed
amateurish and minor league.
For his debut, his campaign
hired New York actors to help
fill the room at Trump Tower.
Who knew what was to come?
Now he is what professional
speakers call a headline attrac-
tion.
By Julie Bykowicz
Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Four of
America’s wealthiest business-
men laid the foundation for Ted
Cruz’s now-surging Republican
presidential campaign and have
redefined the role of political do-
nors.
Although these donors set
it.’
The groundwork laid by
Neugebauer and other major
donors began roughly two years
ago, first in a casual conversation
with Cruz at a donor’s home in
Palm Beach, Florida, then in a
more formal way over the 2014
Labor Day weekend at Neuge-
bauer’s ranch in East Texas.
That October, big-data firm
Cambridge Analytica
which Mercer is an investor —
began working to identify po-
tential Cruz voters and develop
messages that would motivate
them. Alexander Nix, the com-
pany’s chief executive officer,
said the importance of this early
work cannot be overstated. He
credits Cruz for understanding
this.
nors.
Since mid-December, the
Keep the Promise super PACs
have documented about $4 mil-
With just over a week until
voters get their first say, the 45-
year-old Texas senator known as
a conservative warrior has been
ascendant. The $36 million
committed last year by these do-
nor families is now going toward
broadcast and online advertise-
ments, direct mailings and get-
out-the-vote efforts in early pri-
mary states.
The donors’ super political
action committees sponsored
Saturday rallies in Iowa featur-
ing Cruz and conservative per-
sonality Glenn Beck. The state
holds the leadoff caucuses on
Feb. L
in
The super PACs have been
identifying and connecting with
Ethanol advocates point to Cruz voters through digital ads
his oil and gas donors as the rea- and door-knocking, and recent-
son he wants to discontinue that ly began a multimillion-dollar
government subsidy for the TV ad campaign. A Keep the
corn-based fuel. Cruz and the Promise van tailed the Cruz
donors have dismissed that as campaign bus as it made its way
nonsense. His campaign cites as through Iowa last week. Super
evidence Cruz’s desire to end PAC workers handed out thou-
handoutstoallpartsoftheener- sands of “Choose Cruz” yard
gy industry.
Neugebauer, whose private For the biggest donors, it’s no
equity investment firm has in- surprise that Cruz seems to be
vestments in shale, moved to well-positioned heading into the
Puerto Rico in 2014. He said he primaries. In mid-July, Keep the
relocated for his children’s edu- Promise posted on its website a
cation, but there are tax breaks slide-show presentation called
as well. “Can He Win?” The document
Mercer is a former computer predicted it would be “very diffi-
programmer and co-CEO of Re- cult for Establishment to de-
naissance Technologies, one of stroy the conservative challeng-
the country’s largest hedge er.”
“Money never buys you time,”
Nix said, drawing from his expe-
riences with campaigns world-
wide. “Too often clients will
come to you just before an elec-
tion and expect you to work mir-
acles. But you cannot roll back
the clock.”
Key donors soon came up
with a novel arrangement: Each
family would control its own su-
per PAC, but the groups would
work together as a single entity
called Keep the Promise. They
signs.
The long-believing benefac-
tors are New York hedge fund
billionaire Robert Mercer, Texas
natural gas billionaires Farris
and Dan Wilks, and private-eq-
uity partner Toby Neugebauer.
They honed their plan to help
Cruz before he began his steady
rise in polls — before he even an-
nounced his presidential bid in
Time will tell on some campaign questions
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -
Only a week remains before the
Iowa caucuses, the first contest
in a tumultuous presidential
campaign that has challenged
long-held political assumptions.
The Republican race in Iowa
is Donald Trump’s or Texas Sen.
Ted Cruz’s to lose on the night of
Feb. 1. While some party leaders
are coming to grips with the
prospect of Trump as the nomi-
nee, a group of more main-
stream candidates is battling to
beat expectations in Iowa, head
into the New Hampshire prima-
ry on Feb. 9 with momentum
and rise to challenge the front-
running billionaire.
The Democratic race has
evolved into a surprisingly heat-
ed contest between Hillary Clin-
ton and Vermont Sen. Bemie
Sanders, the self-described dem-
ocratic socialist who has ener-
gized young voters and liberals.
ers at a recent fundraiser that he
Even as Iowa lays down the
first marker in the 2016 race,
more potential uncertainty
looms. Former New York Mayor
Michael Bloomberg had jolted
the race yet again by starting to
explore a third party run, partic-
ularly if Trump and Sanders are
the nominees.
With a week to go, a look at a
few of the unknowns that voters
in Iowa will answer caucus
night:
Can anyone or anything
stop Trump?
Trump has done and said so
many things that would have
ended the campaign of just
about anyone else. Even he’s
amazed at his apparent inability
to commit a political error.
“I could stand in the middle of
Fifth Avenue and shoot some-
body, and I wouldn’t lose any vot-
ers, OK?” Trump said Saturday
in Iowa. “It’s, like, incredible.’
Trump’s success so far is would vote for Sanders, a self-
based almost entirely on prefer- described democratic socialist,
ence polls. Still, not a single voter over Cruz,
has weighed in and tested
whether Trump actually is un-
bound by political gravity.
Do Clinton’s attacks
on Sanders succeed?
For months, Clinton spoke
relatively warmly about Sand-
ers. The fear was that any harsh
Cruz has perhaps the clearest critique of the liberal senator
path to the nomination. As the who was pushing a “political
new year dawned, he appeared revolution” might alienate his
poised to unite a fractured con- supporters, so important to the
servative base and become the Democratic nominee in the gen-
leading force as the campaign eral election,
focus shifted to South Carolina
in mid-February and across the
South in March.
That still might happen. But ahead in Iowa, so has Clinton’s
his momentum has stalled as rancor.
Did Ted Cruz peak
too soon?
As Sanders’ standing in pref-
erence polls has risen, to the
point where some show him
high-profile conservatives de-
fected to Trump and Cruz’s rise Julie Pace, Jill Colvin, Steve
drew stiff opposition from main- Peoples, Lisa Lerer, Thomas
stream Republicans. Sen. Rich- Beaumont and Ken Thomas
ard Burr, R-N.C., told support- contributed to this report.
Associated Press writers
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one because his tool bag holds
many oratorical tricks.
These are his path to power.
DENA A. REECER
Board Certified
Estate Planning & Probate Law
Texas Board of Legal Specialization
/
Follow Dave Lieber on
Twitter at @DaveLieber.
Check out the Watchdog at
11:20 a.m. Mondays on NBC5,
talking about matters impor-
tant to you.
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Parks, Scott K. Denton Record-Chronicle (Denton, Tex.), Vol. 112, No. 176, Ed. 1 Monday, January 25, 2016, newspaper, January 25, 2016; Denton, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1127329/m1/3/: accessed June 28, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; .